Sanditon Season 2: The River and the Man

Chapter 163

It was strange following Esther as Charlotte and Sidney were both shown the house. Charlotte was surprised to learn a once-grand house stood another used to stand in its place. The ground floor entrance hall is original to a Tudor House and as she was informed that she felt a chill.

"Did you not know that is stood on a more ancient house?" Sidney whispered in her ear in question.

Charlotte blushed and shrugged. "I didn't. It wasn't my place to ask the history. But it grew up in an old house that is said to be as old as all that. Just seems so very different. Mine was without all the...."

Sidney laughed. "Without all the walnut staircases I would imagine."

She rolled her eyes. "Heavens no."

Esther smiled and led them outside to the church that stood next to the house.

"St. Peters, you know already," Esther said with a smile and memory of her wedding the summer before. "It is a thirteenth-century church and all the old Denham's are buried here or in the mausoleum," she said. "Save for Edward."

"Should we marry here?" Sidney asked under his breath. "Is that perhaps our sort of thing?" he said his voice near her ear and she quivered a little.

Looking up she smiled. "I do think it would be."

He wandered down the aisle ahead of her and held out his hand for them to walk the path together to the front. Esther had excused herself and went to welcome the kitchen staff's return what remaining few held back from other posts in hopes of further employment.

"I told Lady Susan about our engagement," Charlotte whispered nervously. "She suggests the wedding in six weeks, the day of the first summer ball."

He clenched his jaw. "Ah,"

She frowned. "What?"

He looked at her silently for a moment. "Do you really wish to know?"

Charlotte nodded worriedly.

He smiled and chuckled. "I was thinking I would rather throw you over my shoulder and endure another grueling journey to the border if I could but make you my wife sooner." he ended on a more serious note.

Charlotte smiled. "My father will be here shortly you can ask then and we can set the day as soon as possible."

Sidney nodded and turned as he pondered. "Upon deeper thought, the First Summer Ball seems a perfect day to mark the occasion, but I fear it would stretch too late that we would be too tired to enjoy the wedding night." His hand was soft against her cheek.

She blushed and looked away. "Oh, I had not thought of that."

He smiled and pulled her into his arms and caught her mouth in his.

"Esther will be back," she whispered and pulled away nervous that their intimacies would be seen

He nodded. "Yes, and anyone else can see..." he straightened himself with a shaky breath. "Perhaps we should see less of each other until the wedding. Now that we are of one mind, it is hard to not have the body follow...." he smiled uncomfortably as if embarrassed by his confession.

Charlotte nodded sadly. "I agree. You could be right."

"So much to do, and prepare for," he whispered still standing close to her.

She nodded and slipped her hand in his. "Let us just walk and ponder, and leave the planning and preparations for later."

He pulled her back to him which caused her to giggle and he just held her close before kissing her forehead lovingly. "Your family comes tonight, I am not sure how you are going to get out of planning when there is so little time." he thought of the endless stress Eliza had shown in planning their wedding. Now there was Charlotte's family's arrival, the Prince Regent coming, and all the events of Sanditon to follow.

Charlotte laughed. "Esther is managing all that."

He looked up and laughed. "Do you have enough bedrooms for them?"

Shaking her head she laughed. "Not all of them are coming. The youngest are staying behind."

Sidney sighed. "So I will not meet all of your family?"

"The cook is readying the pantry," Esther approached stopping Sidney's line of questioning. "and the beds are being turned down in the best rooms of the house. I have arranged for your things to be brought because It is your home now, and you must learn to live in it." Esther said seriously.

Charlotte blushed as she had not explained her idea to her friend yet about the possible future fate of the house.

"What is it?" Esther pressed seeing the covert gazes of the couple.

Sidney chuckled softly. "We have decided to live in the apartment in Sanditon for a time," he said simply. "We will not live here."

The red hair stood out of end as if she had been shocked. "But why?"

Charlotte stepped forward wanting to speak for herself. "Esther, even now Sanditon House does not feel like my home."

"But it will," Esther said seriously. "You just need to stay here and learn to make it a home."

Shaking her head she went to her friend who looked unnaturally distressed. "I have decided it will be a school," she said simply. "For girls," she said finally.

Esther frowned and looked at her friend shocked. "A girls school?"

Sidney nodded. "I think it a brilliant notion."

Esther seemed rooted to the spot. "But what about you and your own family, your children?"

Charlotte shrugged. "I will worry about all that in five years when I have seven children and have outgrown our Sanditon apartments."

"Seven!" Esther followed shocked. "Surely not that many in five years."

Sidney chuckled. "You and Baber's have a head start,"

Charlotte blushed a lovely crimson and Sidney felt like he had been brought to his knees in want.

Still, there was much to do.